"Ken McCutchan is a life-long resident of Vanderburgh County, Indiana, descended from pioneer families that entered the area in the early 1800s. He is veteran of WWII, having served with Army Corps of Engineers in both North Africa and Europe. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English Composition and Modern Language from the University of Evansville, a certificate in French Language and Culture from the Sorbonne in Paris, and an Honorary Doctor of Letters Degree from the University of Southern Indiana. His other books include: The Adventures of Isaac Knight, From then Til Now, Saundersville, An English Settlement, At The Bend in the River, and Dearest Lizzie. Mr. McCutchan's books may be purchased at Willard Library in Evansville, IN.

The Amazing Little Winifred   

by Kenneth McCutchan

During the first decade of the 20th century there lived in Evansville an amazing child named Winifred Sackville Stoner.

Born in 1902, she was the daughter of Dr. James B. Stoner, who was connected with the old Marine Hospital here.

Almost from birth Winifred showed signs of genius. At 3 she was able to read and write well, and at 6 a book of her original poems was published with illustrations by the famous Evansville cartoonist, Karl Kae Knecht. A sample of her poetry is one about a bumble bee.

One day I saw a bumble bee bumbling on a rose,

And as I stood admiring him he stung me on the nose;

My nose in pain, it swelled so large it looked like a potato,

So Daddy said, though Mother thought 'twas more like a tomato.

And now, dear children, this advice I'll hope you'll take from me,

And when you see a bumble bee, just let the bumble be.

By the time Winifred was 8 she was able to converse in five languages; English, French, Spanish, Latin and Esperanto, which was a attempt at an international language.

She entered and won several chess tournaments and at 9 took and passed the Stanford University entrance exam.

By 12 she was considered an accomplished violinist and pianist, and at 14 wrote and lectured extensively on the theory that Skakespeare's plays were actually written by Bacon. She wrote a long article on the subject which was printed in The Evansville Courier in 1916.

By this time her fame had become international, so her mother took her to Europe, where she lectured on Esperanto and discussed subjects from astronomy to European politics with a profound knowledge that amazed learned men.

In Paris Miss Stoner became affiliated with the League For Fostering Genius.

By 25 she had written 23 books and numerous articles and had been married twice. Her first husband, whom she married at 21, was the French Count Charles de Bruche. Tragically, he was killed soon after their marriage.

Several subsequent marriages ended in divorce. Writing for the magazine Smart Set in 1925, she said of her disappointing private life, "unfortunately, there are emotions that go beyond the restraining influence of any education."

Last heard from in the 1930's, she was married to a Texas oil man. Soon after that she began to disappear from the public spotlight.